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10. Dynamics

We will now begin the study of dynamics, or the analysis of bodies in motion.
Dynamics includes:

Kinematics: study of the geometry of motion. Kinematics is used to relate displacement,

velocity, acceleration, and time without reference to the cause of motion.
Kinetics: study of the relations existing between the forces acting on a body, the mass of
the body, and the motion of the body. Kinetics is used to predict the motion caused by
given forces or to determine the forces required to produce a given motion.

First, we will look at the dynamics of particles, meaning that the motion of the object or
particle will be considered without regard to its size. This essentially means that motion
or rotation of the object about its own centre will be neglected.

• Rectilinear motion: position, velocity, and acceleration of a particle as it moves

along a straight line.
• Curvilinear motion: position, velocity, and acceleration of a particle as it moves
along a curved line in two or three dimensions.

Position – a distance, or coordinate in space, defining the location of an object at a

certain time.
Units: m
Can be defined with respect to time, i.e. x = 6t2-t3

Velocity – distance travelled in a certain amount of time, magnitude of the velocity is the
speed, velocity is a vector and therefore has a direction, magnitude and sense.
Units: m/s
Positive velocity indicates that the particle is moving in the positive direction, negative –
particle is moving in the negative direction.

x dx
average velocity v
t dt

Acceleration – rate of change of velocity; acceleration is also a vector quantity

Units: m/s2
Positive acceleration indicates that velocity is increasing, either by the particle moving
faster in the positive direction, or slower in the negative direction.

v dv dv
average acceleration a a v
t dt dx
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Particle motion defined by x = 6t2-t3

dx
v 12t 3t 2
dt
dv
a 12 6t
dt

Particle starts with 0 velocity, but

positive acceleration at time t=0;
At t=2s, acceleration is zero, velocity
is at a maximum;
From t=2 to t=4s, v is positive, a is
negative, particle still moves in the
positive direction, just more and more
slowly (decelerating);
At t = 4s, velocity is 0 and position has
reached the maximum;
After t = 4s, v and a are both negative,
particle is accelerating in the negative
direction
At t = 6s, particle passes through the
origin, total distance travelled is 64 m.
Particle continues to move in the
negative direction.
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For particle in uniform rectilinear motion, the acceleration is zero and the velocity is
constant.

dx
v constant
dt
x t
dx v dt
x0 0

x x0 vt
x x0 vt
For a particle in uniformly accelerated rectilinear motion, the acceleration is constant, and
the following equations can be derived:

dv
a constant
dt
v t
dv a dt
v0 0

v v0 at; v v0 at - equation 1
dx
v0 at
dt
x t
dx v0 at dt
x0 0

1 2
x x0 v0 t at - equation 2
2
dv
Or v a constant
dx
v x
vdv a dx
v0 x0

1 2 2
v v0 ax x0
2

2
v2 v0 2a x x0 - equation 3

These equations are useful for objects in free-fall due to gravity.

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Example question #1

The cheetah can run as fast as 75 mi/h. Assume that the animal’s acceleration is constant
and that it reaches top speed in 4 s, what distance can it cover in 10 s?
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10.1 Motion of Several Particles

10.1.1 Relative motion of Two Particles

Consider two particles moving along the same straight line. If the position of A and B
are measured with respect to the same origin, the difference xB-xA defines the relative
position coordinate of B with respect to A (xB/A).

O A B

xA xB/A
xB

xB / A xB xA ; vB / A vB vA ; aB / A aB aA

10.1.2 Dependent Motion

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Sometimes, the position of a particle may depend on the position of one or more other
particles. In the figure above, the position of block B depends on position of block A.
Since rope is of constant length, it follows that sum of lengths of segments must be
constant.
xA + 2xB = constant

Only one of xA or xB can be chosen arbitrarily – this system has 1 degree of freedom
(DOF)

Two coordinates can be chosen arbitrarily – this system has 2 DOF

In the above figure, the positions of three blocks are dependent.

2xA + 2xB + xC = constant

For linearly related positions, similar relations hold between velocities and
accelerations.
2vA + 2vB + vC = constant
2aA + 2aB + aC = constant
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10.2 Curvilinear Motion

We have now seen motion along a straight line path, which can be defined by scalar
values. But motion along a curved path requires description using vectors. This is most
easily done using Cartesian vectors.

Consider a point P (x,y,z) whose position is given by the Cartesian vector r :
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Example Question #1

The skier leaves the 20° surface at 10 m/s. Determine the distance d to the point where
he lands, and the magnitudes of his velocity parallel and perpendicular to the surface just
before he lands.
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10.3 Normal and Tangential Components

Consider the motion of a particle along a curved path. The figure below shows the
velocity of the particle at times t and t + ∆t. The change in velocity ∆v has two
components:
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11. Dynamics - Kinetics

11.1 Newton’s Second Law

 
 dv
F ma m
dt
(No longer in static equilibrium where sum of the forces =0, now dynamic equilibrium.)

For an object of mass m, moving in a Cartesian coordinate system:

     
Fx i Fy j Fz k m ax i a y j az k

Example Problem #4

The two crates shown are released from rest. Their masses are mA = 40 kg and mB = 30
kg, and the coefficients of friction between crate A and the inclined surface are s =0.2
and k =0.15. What is the acceleration of the crates?
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11.2 Normal and Tangential Components

We have seen how to resolve an object’s acceleration in terms of a normal and tangential
component. Therefore, we can also write Newton’s second law in the following form:

   
Ft et Fn en m(at et an en )
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Example Problem #5

A civil engineer’s preliminary design for a freeway off-ramp is circular with radius R =
60 m. If she assumes that the coefficient of static friction between the tires and the road
is at least s =0.4, what is the maximum speed at which the vehicles can enter the ramp
without losing traction?
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